Open this text page in a new tab Open earthquake page in a new tab

Letter from the French Consulate in Saida (Sidon)

Background
Background

Excerpts
English

THE SEYDE EARTHQUAKE IN 1759

Seyde, ancient Sidon, present-day Saïda, was for the French, during the 18th century, the main "partner" of central and southern Syria, Aleppo being the main one in Northern Syria. This small town, which was then the seat of a Turkish Pashalik, owed a real prosperity to the trade in colons (?), for whom it was the most important market. The export of this article gave a real activity to its port. This traffic was almost exclusively in the hands of French traders, who represented trading houses of Marseilles and lived there, as in the other ports (?) of the Levant and Barbary, organized into national bodies, under the protection of the King's Consul, housed all together in a "Khan", annually appointing two "deputies of the nation" and dependent for the administration of their port (?) to the Secretary of State for the Navy, the King's Ambassador to Constantinople, and the Chamber of Commerce of Marseill

An earthquake caused serious damage to Seyde in 1759. The Consulate of France reported it to the Chamber of Commerce of Marseilles in the following terms. The obvious exaggeration gives one a strong impression how the earthquakes and their consequences affected the mind of this brave official.

F. Ch. R.

From the gardens of Seyde, December 28, 1769.

GENTLEMEN,

Since October 30, a furious shock at 3:45 in the morning made us fear a fate like the one in Lisbon [JW: the 1755 Lisbon Earthquake]. We feel the continuing tremors day and night. There was another one on November 25, which was stronger and longer than the first. The two earthquakes ruined the city of Seyde, such that I doubt she can recover, given the poverty of the country and the unhelpful and unwilling government. There is no house that has not been completely or partially destroyed. The Khan was extremely damaged, especially on the sunset and midday side; it is uninhabitable here and in many other places. My house is in the same condition; all rooms were damaged. Several houses had to be demolished; some were damaged. We all left town on October 30 to take refuge in the countryside, under tents that the Pasha loaned me. We spent 48 days there and, obliged to return the tents to the Pasha, we did with recognition of about two hundred piastres. We had huts built, which were very costly, and in which we will have to winter, albeit with much inconvenience and risk due to the plague, which is now in Acre and environs, and will surely soon come here.


I have already had the honor of pointing out to you that the earthquakes still continue. We haven't had a 24 hour stretch without tremors and today we felt some. These tremors are felt throughout Syria. You know from the other partners(?) what happened there. I will confine myself to telling you that, in this department, which seems to have suffered the most, Acre was damaged a bit less than Seyde. Baruth (Beirut), Rame, Jerusalem and Jane felt it, but with less damage. Safed and Nablus have been completely ruined and overthrown. Damascus is three quarters destroyed and famous Baalbek is completely destroyed. Several villages were damaged in the mountains. Large fissures opened up in the earth on the Baalbek side and it is said that these cracks extend more than 20 leagues (~110 km.). Finally, it is assumed that more than thirty thousand people died in Syria.

Thank God none of us got hurt. But, we all had a beautiful scare. Happy to still be here! We believe that the dryness of the earth contributed to these shocks; we sigh after the rain. The rains are heavy, with continuous thunderstorms and for four days, the earth won't stop shaking. We are in even more disorder than the earth. All our cabins are flooded. One cabin longer than a square plank is slightly less flooded and is all the shelter I have for myself, my wife, my four children, including one on the breast, and my servants. One cannot imagine a more unfortunate situation.
[Historical archives of the Chamber of Commerce of Marseilles, A.A. 340].

French

LE TREMBLEMENT DE TERRE DE SEYDE EN 1759

Seyde, l'ancienne Sidon, l'actuelle Saïda, fut pour les Français, pendant le XVIII° siècle, la principale «Échelle» de la Syrie centrale et méridionale, Alep étant la principale de la Syrie septentrionale. La petite ville, qui était alors le siège d'un Pachalik turc, devait une véritable prospérité au commerce des colons, dont elle était le marché le plus important. L'exportation de cet article donnait une réelle activité à son port. Ce trafic était à peu près exclusivement entre les mains de négociants français, qui représentaient des maisons de commerce de Marseille et vivaient là, comme dans les autres Échelles du Levant et de Barbarie, organisés en corps de «nation», sous la protection d'un Consul du Roi, logés tous ensemble dans un «Khan», nommant annuellement deux « députés de la nation » et dépendant, pour l'administration de leur Échelle, du Secrétaire d'Etat de la Marine, de l'Ambassadeur du Roi à Constantinople et de la Chambre du Commerce de Marseill

Un tremblement de terre ayant causé de graves dommages à Seyde en 1759, le Consul de France en rendit compte à la Chambre du Commerce de Marseille dans les termes suivants, dont l'évidente exagération montre du moins la forte impression que les secousses sismiques et leurs conséquences avaient produite sur l'esprit de ce brave fonctionnaire.

F. Ch. R.

« Des jardins de Seyde, le 28 décembre 1769.

« MESSIEURS,

« Depuis le 30 octobre, qu'une furieuse secousse à trois heures trois quarts du matin nous fit craindre un sort pareil à celui de Lisbonne, nous n'avons cessé jour et nuit de ressentir jusqu'à ce jour des tremblements de terre continuels. 11 y en eut un le 25 novembre, qui a été et plus fort et plus long encore que le premier. Les deux secousses ont ruiné la ville de Seyde, de façon que je doute qu'elle s'en puisse relever, vu la misère du pays et le gouvernement peu disposé à la diminuer. Il n'y a point de maison qui n'ait été écroulée en tout ou en partie. Le Khan a été extrêmement maltraité, surtout du côté du couchant et du midi; il est inhabitable clans cette partie et dans beaucoup d'autres. Ma maison est dans le même état ; tous les appartements ont été endommagés. Il a fallu en démolir plusieurs ; quelques-uns ont été abîmés Nous avons tous abandonné la ville dès le 30 octobre pour nous réfugier à la campagne, sous des tentes que le Pacha m'avait fait prêter. Nous y avons passé quarantehuit jours et, ayant été obligés de rendre les tentes au Pacha, ce que nous avons fait avec une reconnaissance d'environ deux cents piastres, nous nous sommes fait construire des cabanes, qui nous coûtent incroyablement et sous lesquelles il nous faudra hiverner, quoiqu'avec beaucoup d'incommodité pour le lieu et pour la saison et beaucoup de risque du côté de la peste, qui vdent de se manifester à Acre et dans son voisinage, et qui infailliblement sera bientôt ici. »


« J'ai déjà eu l'honneur de vous marquer que les tremblements de terre continuent toujours. Nous n'en avons pas encore été exempts pendant vingt-quatre heures et aujourd'hui encore nous en aA7ons ressenti des secousses. Ces tremblements sont généraux par toute la Syrie. Vous saurez des autres Échelles ce qui y est arrivé. Je me bornerai à vous dire que, dans ce département, qui paraît avoir été la partie la plus souffrante, Acre a été à peu près comme Seyde, mais un peu moins mal. Baruth (Beyrouth), Rame, Jérusalem et Jane l'ont ressenti, mais av-ec moins de dommage. Safed et Napoulouse ont été entièrement ruinées et renversées. Damas l'est aux trois quarts et le fameux Balbek est entièrement détruit. Plusieurs villages ont été abîmés dans les montagnes. Il s'est fait des ouvertures considérables à la terre du côté de Balbek et l'on dit que ces abîmes durent plus de 20 lieues. Enfin l'on suppose qu'il a péri jusqu'à ce jouiplus de trente mille personnes dans la Syrie.

Grâces à Dieu, personne des nôtres n'a pris mal. Mais nous avons tous eu une belle peur. Heureux encore de pouvoir l'avoir ! Nous croyions que la sécheresse de la terre contribuait à ces ébranlements ; nous soupirions après la pluie. Il en fait de très abondantes, avec des orages continuels, depuis quatre jours, sans que la terre en soit plus stable ; et nous n'en sommes que plus en désordre : toutes nos cabanes sont inondées ; une seule, grande de la longueur d'une planche en carré, l'est un peu moins et fait tout l'abri que j'ai pour moi, nia femme, quatre enfants dont un à la mamelle, et pour mes domestiques. On ne peut voir de situation plus fâcheuse. »

[Archives historiques de la Chambre de Commerce de Marseille, A. A. 340].

Original Document

Chronology
30 Oct. 1759 CE Earthquake
Date Reference Corrections Notes
3:45 am 30 Oct. 1759 CE October 30, a furious shock at 3:45 in the morning none
25 Nov. 1759 CE Earthquake
Date Reference Corrections Notes
25 Nov. 1759 CE There was another one on November 25 none
Combined Seismic Effects
  • October 30, a furious shock at 3:45 in the morning
  • We feel the continuing tremors day and night
  • There was another one on November 25, which was stronger and longer than the first
  • The two earthquakes ruined the city of Seyde
  • There is no house that has not been completely or partially destroyed
  • The Khan was extremely damaged, especially on the sunset and midday side
  • it is uninhabitable here and in many other places
  • My house is in the same condition; all rooms were damaged
  • Several houses had to be demolished; some were damaged
  • We all left town on October 30 to take refuge in the countryside
  • the earthquakes still continue
  • We haven't had a 24 hour stretch with out tremors and today we felt some
  • These tremors are felt throughout Syria
  • Acre was damaged a bit less than Seyde
  • Baruth (Beirut), Rame, Jerusalem and Jane felt it, but with less damage
  • Safed and Nablus have been completely ruined and overthrown
  • Damascus is three quarters destroyed
  • Baalbek is completely destroyed
  • Several villages were damaged in the mountains
  • Large fissures opened up in the earth on the Baalbek side and it is said that these cracks extend more than 20 leagues (~110 km.)
  • it is assumed that more than thirty thousand people died in Syria.
Locations

More Damaged
  • Saida (Sidon)
  • Acre
  • Damascus
  • Baalbek
  • Safed
  • Nablus
  • Several villages in the mountains
Less Damaged
  • Beirut
  • Rame (Ramle?}
  • Jerusalem
  • Jane (Jenin?)
Tectonic Implications
Earth fissure in Baalbek

Daeron et al (2005:529-530) presented surface faulting evidence that suggested younger less weathered fault scarplets on the Rachaıya-Serghaya faults and fresh mole-tracks on the Rachaıya fault [both closer to Baalbek] were associated with one of the 1759 CE fault breaks while older more weathered faults scarplets on the Yammouneh fault [farther from Baalbek] were associated with one of the the 1202 CE earthquakes. At the time of publication, they were only able to access a single line from the French Consul's report which was somewhat ambiguously worded. Nonetheless, they were able to ascertain from the sentence that the ~80 km. earth fissure was probably reported on the eastern Baalbek side of the Beqaa Valley in agreement with their scarplet observations. This contradicted previous speculation by Ambraseys and Barazangi (1989) that the 25 Nov. 1759 CE fault break was on the Yammouneh fault on the west side of the Beqaa Valley. The fuller account from the French Consul's office of Saida presented here shows that the earth fissure was observed on the east side of the Beqaa Valley (i.e., the Baalbek side).

Online Versions and Further Reading
References

Notes
Fault Rupture - Daeron (2005) and Daeron et al (2005)

Daeron et al (2005:530) suggested that the wording [in the account by the French consul in Saida] suggests that this rupture took place on one side of the Beqaa, and the mention of Baalbek points to the east side, thus to the Serghaya fault. Daeron et al (2005:529-530) presented surface faulting evidence that suggested younger less weathered fault scarplets on the Rachaıya-Serghaya faults and fresh mole-tracks on the Rachaıya fault [both closer to Baalbek] were associated with one of the 1759 CE fault breaks while older more weathered faults scarplets on the Yammouneh fault [farther from Baalbek] were associated with one of the the 1202 CE earthquakes.

Excerpts

English translated from Daeron (2005) by Google and Williams

It is claimed that [...] from the side of Balbec in tirans (?) towards the plain the earth has opened more than three fathoms [~6 m] and that this opening extends more than twenty leagues [~80 km.]. (National Archives, Paris, B1/1032/1959-60)

English from Daeron (2005)

One claims that [ . . . ] on the Baalbek side (or possibly: near Baalbek) pulling toward the plain the earth cracked open by more than [~6 m] and that this crack extends for over twenty leagues (~80 km) (Archives Nationales, Paris, B1/1032/1959-60).

English from a paraphrase/quasi-translation in Ambraseys and Barazangi (1989)

It is said that as a result of the earthquake, a series of ground ruptures many yards wide were formed running continuously along the Bekaa valley, to the north of Baalbek as far as opposite Tripoli and to the southwest to the plain of Satern, a total distance of about 100 km.

French from Daeron (2005)

On pretend que [...] du cote de Balbec en tirans vers la plaine la terre s’est entrouverte de plus de trois toises et que cette ouverture dure plus de vingt lieues. (Archives Nationales, Paris, B1/1032/1959-60)

Online Versions and Further Reading
References